O.C. Nostalgia

Being as it's the series finale tonight, and I haven't had one of my shows make such a dramatic and declarative countdown farewell since the end of X-Files, I thought I would post a list of the top 10 and the bottom 10 moments from the past four 3.5 years. Now, it'll be a bit of a patchy list since I've only seen a few of the episodes more than once, and I've missed at least 25 all together.

I started browsing around YouTube to see if I could jog my memory a little...and holy COW, I am being hit with a powerful wave of nostalgia. I'd forgotten that as much as I cursed at the show and got angry and fed up with it on numerous occasions, there were good times too. Who knew that something as simple as the Fab Four being silly sophomores, biking/skateboarding down the length of the boardwalk or whatever it's called would make me want to cry? I miss when they were all friends, because back in the beginning, it was just so improbable that Ryan would find a group to hang out with, or that Seth would ever have...well, friends. Also, when Ryan had longer hair, he was ten times more adorable and capable of pulling off the puppy-dog look. I missed that this season.

I do not miss when Seth had really short hair and looked like a dork. Or the 15,245 sex scenes and 400 partner swaps that went on (approximated numbers). Or the 9,000 extraneous and hated minor characters. But I do miss the feeling of past years:

Season 1 - my senior year of high school, when I loved the show (from August-March, anyway, before it began to fall apart), and scribbled rantviews in a notebookSeason 2 - When I spat at and boycotted the dirty dirty show, hating how EVERYBODY in college was obsesed with it, but snuck back to watch reruns during the summer because I was morbidly curious about my characters' lives, and knew which episodes were really bad and should be skipped.Season 3 - When I half loved the show again (from September-January) and half despised it again (February-May)...but mostly, I discovered Television Without Pity recaps.Season 4 - When I swung into full Rantview mode and loved it because it entertained me, though its quality was the dullest it had ever been.

And now for the best and worst of it all...hm. Seems Marissa made more of an impact than I thought.

Top Ten Moments 10. Every time Ryan punched somebody.

9. Summer seeing the little boy in the airport, reminding her of Seth and making her run back to him.

8. Pretty much...every Seth/Ryan scene from "The Night Moves"

7. Whatever scene it was where Marissa struggling angrily, trying to push past Ryan, but he just held onto her until she stopped fighting and broke down in tears on his shoulder.

6. When the family stages an intervention for Kirsten, and Ryan brings up his own past and says he doesn't want to see it destroy someone else he loves. (or something to that effect. The exact words are long forgotten)

5. The pilot - the look on Ryan's face when he realizes that his family has cleared out and he's standing alone in an empty house. Awww.

4a. "My little snow angel" 4b. Similar time period, maybe same episode, when Seth comes to Summer and apologizes for their recent fighting with "it's just that you're so superior to me in so many ways"...it ends with a kiss on the nose.

3a. Johnny falling asleep on Marissa' shoulder3b. The almost-kiss3c. Him telling her about his abusive father (yes, Johnny was so great that he gets a 3-for-1)

2. Marissa dying in Ryan's arm. HIS FACE...makes me want to cry.

1. Ryan/Marissa spooning in the TJ motel room. In all television history, that scene is STILL way up near the top of my list. And that episode is still my favorite, though several of Johnny's eps come close.-----------------Ten Most Godawful Moments Ever

10. No specific moment, but just the fact that Theresa got pregnant and Ryan quit school and moved out to "support her" at age 17...

8a. Seth coming home drunk from his first party8b. Seth being stoned8c. Seth getting a tattoo

7. Johnny GETTING DRUNK and DYING.

6. Any time Taylor mentioned one of her kinky sexual fantasies or fell in love with Ryan or Seth

5. Marissa's first time

4. Anything involving Trashy Alex, but mostly her making out with Marissa on the beach.

3. The attempted rape.

2. Tiki Hut sex on the beach (R/M)

1. *Anything* directly pertaining to Seth's First Time. That means the act itself, talking to Ryan about it, and talking to Sandy about it. *shudders* Absolutely nothing scarred me as badly as that scenario did. I might still need therapy.

Hmmm...that was fun. I've posted a ridiculous number of times today, though. It's amazing I've managed to accomplish anything else.